Does a Girl Sitting on a Guy’s Lap During Bench Press Really Work? (Revealed!)

Anyone else heard about the girl sitting on a guy during bench press?

This was a sensation sweeping the internet for a number of years.

Basically, it was said that a guy would be able to perform more reps on bench press while a girl is sitting on his lap.

And the main reason given was an increase in testosterone levels due to having a girl in close proximity.

However, can this actually be true?

Or is this nothing more than hearsay, potentially a myth?

Allow me to reveal all.

Girl Sitting on Guy During Bench Press

There is no actual scientific evidence to prove that a girl sitting on a guy’s lap during bench press will increase testosterone levels, and therefore increase the reps the guy can perform. In reality, this could simply come down to the guy trying to impress the girl. Then again, it could be down to the neural adaptations from performing the first set, i.e. your body, brain, and Central Nervous System are now used to the movement after performing the first set. Therefore, you’ll automatically improve your bench press on the second set.

The “Unnamed” Bench Press Study

The girl sitting on a guy’s lap during bench press originated as an internet meme.

However, as it turns out, the meme actually cited a study that said this works.

In truth, the study remains unnamed, so there’s no way of proving it, other than trying it for yourself.

Basically, the test involves choosing a fairly easy weight, and then bench pressing this weight for 45 seconds.

You’ll then rest for 15 minutes.

Following your rest, you now perform the 45-second bench press again, but this time you do it with a woman sitting on your lap.

It is said that you should be able to perform more reps the second time around, as your testosterone levels have been raised by having an attractive girl sitting on your lap.

This theory was actually tested in a clinical trial among students at the University of Arizona.

The test that was performed at the University of Arizona was aimed at teaching students to look at medicine with a critical eye.

In other words, don’t believe everything that the health system tells you, but rather use hard facts and statistics to draw your conclusions.

The study took 56 men and split them into four different groups.

Some of the men performed the bench press test without a female on their lap, while others completed their two 45-second bench press tests with a woman sitting on their lap.

The study concluded that when a man had a woman sitting on their lap they were able to perform one additional rep than if they didn’t have a girl sitting astride them.

It was stated that this was enough of a statistical significance to confirm that a man’s bench press will improve when a woman is sitting on his lap.

That being said, the reason behind this isn’t obviously 100% clear.

So, the conclusion drawn was that a man’s bench press increased due to either increased levels of testosterone or their need to impress the girl sat on them.

What’s Really Happening With Your Bench Press?

Now, in reality, I personally don’t feel there is any truth in the girl sitting astride a man while bench pressing.

What I mean by this is that I don’t believe that this raises a man’s testosterone, thus meaning he can bench more reps.

Okay, don’t get me wrong, this simple action is highly likely to raise testosterone levels.

In fact, there have actually been legitimate scientific studies into this.

So, I can confirm that if a man is sexually aroused, with or without acting on that sexual arousal, his testosterone levels will indeed increase.

Furthermore, I can also confirm that an increase in testosterone levels improves protein synthesis, and can therefore lead to increased muscle mass.

However, this is of course not an immediate reaction.

Basically, you don’t get a boost in testosterone levels and suddenly become stronger and more muscular.

This is a gradual increase that will only come about with regular increases in testosterone levels.

And of course, bench pressing and lifting weights in general is a great way to increase testosterone.

That being said, I don’t believe the increase in reps achieved while a girl sits on your lap is due to an increase in testosterone levels.

Realistically, this comes down to neural adaptation, as well as your muscles being warmer.

What I mean by this is that your first set fires up the body, the muscles, your brain, and your Central Nervous System.

In effect, you are now “warm” and ready for whatever is about to be thrown at you.

So, once you’ve taken a good 15 minutes rest, it’s extremely likely that you’ll hit more reps of bench press the second time around.

It actually surprises me that many people feel that the “increase in testosterone levels” is true.

And this is especially true when it comes to the University of Arizona’s study claiming that one additional rep was classed as “statistically significant”.

Come on, wouldn’t we all be capable of at least increasing an “easy” bench pressing weight by one-rep after 15 minutes rest?

In fact, I have even seen lifters quoting “testosterone rises to approximately 97.9%” when a girl sits on your lap during bench press.

No sorry, I’m not having it, and as I say, although certain actions, such as bench pressing, will help to increase testosterone levels, this is hardly likely to have an immediate impact on strength.

Then again, you could always have a girl sit on you when you next bench press, and then draw your own conclusions from your results.

Girl On Lap During Bench Press

Final Thoughts

So, I hope you understand that there is no real proof that a girl sitting on a guy’s lap will improve his bench press.

It is said that this simple act will raise a man’s testosterone levels, thus allowing him to crank out more reps of bench press.

However, in truth, a burst of testosterone would never work in that way.

Realistically, the additional reps while a girl is sitting on your lap comes down to a couple of other factors.

The test involves performing bench press for 45 seconds as normal, and then doing the same thing 15 minutes later, while a girl is sitting on your lap.

But, what’s really happening here is that your body is now warm, plus your body, brain, and Central Nervous system have been activated.

This simple neural adaptation should help you to either lift more weight or perform more reps.

Talking of lifting more weight and performing more reps, I’ve recently also written about the number of sets of bench press for hypertrophy.